Angel Reese and Caitlin Clark talk about the controversial ending of the NCAA women’s basketball tournament

DALLAS, Texas — The NCAA women’s basketball championship in Dallas, Texas, has been widely watched, respected and played as the women’s game has grown in popularity over the past few seasons. More than 19,000 fans attended the title game where LSU beat Iowa 102-85, but the big game wasn’t without controversy and trash talk.

The game was highly anticipated as Iowa was coming off a win in the Big Ten tournament and a huge loss to undefeated and reigning NCAA titleholder South Carolina in the Final Four. LSU has only lost two games this season against South Carolina and then Tennessee in the SEC tournament. Then the Tigers knocked off 1-seed Virginia Tech in the Big Dance to advance to the title game.

Perhaps the players who drew fans to the American Airlines Center for the Final Four were Hawkeyes junior guard Caitlin Clark and Tigers sophomore forward Angel Reese. Clark is known as the Big Ten and AP Player of the Year, while Reese also had a tremendous performance this season averaging 23 points and 15.4 rebounds per game, which is second best in the country.

However, both of these talented players have big personalities and have been criticized or celebrated for it throughout the season on social media. Clark has been seen taunting teams on the court when she connects a deep three, and Reese is just as expressive on the court.

In the title match, Reese was filmed pointing her ring finger in the direction of Clark, who claimed she didn’t know what was going on.

“I honestly have no idea,” Clark said in a postgame press conference. “I was just trying to get to the handshake line, shake hands and be grateful that my team is in this position. That’s all you can do is keep your head up, be proud of what you have done.”

Clark went on to say that she received kind words from LSU head coach Kim Mulkey, who also sparked her own controversy during the title game.

The legendary coach, who has now won four national championships with Baylor and now LSU, was seen walking all over the field as the clock ticked down to the point where an official lightly pushed her aside.

Mulkey didn’t talk about it in the postgame press conference, but Reese did talk about the criticism she herself receives on social media.

“Twitter is going to get mad every time, and I’m happy,” Reese said. “I feel like I contributed to the development of women’s basketball this year. I’m super happy and excited, so I can’t wait to celebrate next season.

“Twitter can say what Twitter can say. I love reading these comments. I have all the screenshots of what everyone has been saying about me all season. What are you going to say now?”

Mulkey had little to add about the Twitter rage and seemed discouraged by questions related to the topic during his postgame press conference.

“If you’re on social media and you’re hiding behind a computer, I don’t like you,” Mulkey said. “If you want to come face to face with me and disagree with me on things, I respect you more.

“I don’t know anything about Twitter, Facebook. I have accounts. You will see that I have accounts. I don’t touch it. My coaches do it for me, so I can’t help you in any area of ​​this that was said.”

Fans on social media, especially Twitter, were criticizing Reese’s unsportsmanlike attitude. However, Clark has been in the same boat in other major games this season. During Iowa’s loss to Indiana on February 9, Clark flew over the Hoosiers’ bench, placing a “three” sign near his eye.

However, she wasn’t gloating much during the title match. She actually gave credit to LSU’s 11 three-pointers and said the Tigers deserved to win. Hawkeye coach Lisa Bluder was quick to praise LSU.

“I just want to congratulate LSU,” Bluder said. “I thought they played a phenomenal game. They shot the ball really well today…”

“I’m so proud of my team. I’m proud of the women that they are. I’m proud of what they represent. The Iowa fans that came out here in droves, I’m very grateful for them. I’m I’m grateful to be able to coach at a university like the University of Iowa.”

Trash talk is part of the game, whether fans or the teams themselves agree with it or not. However, the title match also highlighted what announcers and fans are calling a poor officiating game.

Clark committed her third foul in the second quarter and her fourth in the third, which was a controversial move for throwing a ball behind her toward the hoop and not passing it to a referee.

“I thought they decided it was very, very close,” Clark said. “I don’t know about the two pushes in the second quarter. I’m sure they saw that I pushed and they called it and such and then hit with the technical foul in the third for having threw the ball under the ball. basket.”

Manager Lisa Jones explained to a reporter why technical assistance was requested from Clark.

“Iowa received a delay of game warning in the third period at the 7:28 mark for pushing the ball away after a successful field goal, causing a delay. The second infraction occurred when Lowa’s number 22 picked up the ball and failed to do so immediately. pass the ball to the nearest official after the whistle. Rule Reference — Rule 10, Section 12, Article 3K. The definition of delay can be found in the rule 4, section 9, article 1F, by failing to do so and it reads: attempting to gain an advantage by interfering with the ball after a goal, or by failing to immediately pass the ball to the nearest referee after the whistle.

Clark wasn’t the only one stopped by a whistle. Fifth-year center Monika Czinano committed early fouls and ultimately fouled out in her final collegiate game with senior forward/guard McKenna Warnock.

“I can’t comment on the officials,” Bluder said. “It’s very frustrating because I feel like I can’t talk to them. They don’t even listen. That’s what’s frustrating is that there hasn’t even been possible conversation.

“When your two seniors have to sit on the bench, they don’t know they’re seniors. I get it. But those two women didn’t deserve it. I don’t think so. And then Caitlin gets a T. I don’t know not. It’s a shame.”

LSU also got whistled against them, as Reese picked up two fouls in the second quarter following a questionable call against her while trying to steal the ball from Iowa’s Hannah Stuelke. Reese finished the game with three fouls while his team finished with 18 to Iowa’s 19.

Even with the trash talk and poor officiating, the title game was unforgettable as the Tigers won their first national championship and did so by shooting an incredible 54.3 percent from the field and 64.7 percent from the three-point line. For the Hawkeyes, Clark scored a record 191 points in the NCAA tournament, the most by any male or female player in history.

Through tears of joy, Mulkey celebrated her talented Tigers as her LSU team had the final laugh on an exceptional 2022-23 women’s basketball season.

“They just blessed me,” Mulkey said. “They’re baseball players. They compete. I don’t know how we did it. Defense and rebounding carried us a lot this year. I can’t tell you the defense carried us today, but you’re playing against a generational talent in Clark, so you knew you’d better score the ball with them, and we scored the ball from every position today.”

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